Can Do forms in Japanese Posted by keiko on Sep 19, 2014 in Grammar
When someone asks you, “Can you help me this weekend? (Konshu matsu tetsudatte itadake masuka? (今週末、手伝っていただけますか?こんしゅうまつ てつだって いただけますか?)” in Japanese, how would you respond? If you are available to help out, you can reply saying, “Sure, I can help you.” In Japanese, this is expressed as, “Un, tetsudaeru yo. (うん、手伝えるよ。うん、てつだえるよ。)”
As you noted here, the word, tetsudau (てつだう) == > becomes tetsudaeru (てつだえる) to express the meaning, “can help”. This lesson covers many of the examples showing you how you can express “can ~” in Japanese. Stay tuned!
You might notice the pattern below. To convert the verb into “can ~” form, you use the extra words at the bottom of each verb, “eru (える)”. Take a look at each example below to get an idea on how you can use it in the sentence.
Help == Can Help
tetsudau ==> tetsudaeru 手伝う(てつだう)==>手伝える(てつだえる)
I can help you tomorrow. ==> Ashita tetsudaeru yo.(明日、手伝えるよ。あした、てつだえるよ。)
Run ==> Can Run
hashiru ==> hashireru 走る(はしる) ==>走れる (はしれる)
I can run fast! ==> Hayaku hashireru yo. (速く、走れるよ。はやく はしれるよ。)
Buy ==> Can Buy
kau ==> kaeru 買う(かう) ==>買える (かえる)
I can buy the cookie with my money. ==> Jibun no okanede ano cukki- ga kaeruyo.(自分のお金で、あのクッキーが買えるよ。じぶんのおかねで、あのクッキーがかえるよ。)
Go ==> Can Go
iku ==> ikeru 行く(いく) ==>行ける (いける)
I can go to beach tomorrow with you.==> Ashita anatato isshoni bi-chi e ikeru yo.(明日、あなたと一緒に ビーチへ行けるよ。あした、あなたといっしょに ビーチへいけるよ。)
Sleep ==> Can Sleep
neru==> nereru 寝る(ねる) ==>寝れる (ねれる)
I can sleep with lights on. ==> Denki ga tsuite itemo nereru yo.(電気がついていても、寝れるよ。でんきがついていても ねれるよ。)
Eat==> Can Eat
taberu==> tabereru 食べる(たべる) ==>食べれる(たべれる)
I can eat even spicy food. ==> Karai mono demo tabereru yo. (辛い物でも食べれるよ。 からいものでも たべれるよ。)
Write==> Can Write
kaku==> kakeru 書く(かく) ==>書ける(かける)
I can write long essay. ==> Nagai sakubun ga kakeru yo. (長い作文が書けるよ。ながいさくぶんが、かけるよ。)
Hope you got an idea on how we can covert the normal form to can form in Japanese. These expressions can be also expressed as ” can run (hashiru kotoga dekiru)” for example. This expression is also valid as it means the same thing. However, most of the time, ERU form sounds much more natural!
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